Hampton School Board drops claim against former chief Russo

HAMPTON — The legal skirmish between the Hampton School Board and former superintendent Patrick Russo could be drawing to a close.

Last week, the board dropped a claim against Russo that said the former chief breached his contract by not listing the board as joint owner of his retirement fund.

The board had already won judgment on a second claim in its lawsuit — in March, a judge ruled in Hampton Circuit Court that Russo must forfeit $102,220 the board paid into the account because he resigned before his contract ended.

That ruling became a final order after the breach-of-contract claim was dropped, according to Stanley Barr, the attorney handling the case for the board.

So how will the school board collect its money?

"No decision has been made," Barr wrote in an e-mail. "Maybe Dr. Russo will show up with a check."

That seems unlikely, since Russo's attorney, Susan North, has aggressively fought the board's lawsuit since it was filed in November 2009, filing a counter lawsuit, a state appeal, and a federal lawsuit.

A local judge commended North in March for "fighting tooth and nail" for Russo to keep the money in his retirement fund, which she argued was rightfully his property by federal law.

North said in an email Monday that she attempted to communicate with the board's attorney to discuss a potential settlement, but did not receive a response so she will press ahead with another lawsuit.

"I will be re-filing his (Russo's) state court lawsuit this week," she wrote. "It will probably have two breach-of-contract claims against the School Board."

Since then, Barr said he has responded to her request to discuss a settlement. The board is "willing to talk," he said in an email Wednesday.

North did not clarify what two claims she would file, but Russo's federal lawsuit alleged that the board breached his transition agreement by withholding his pay and benefits after the dispute began.

That lawsuit was dismissed on grounds that the dispute is a state matter. Russo's state appeal was also dismissed, because there was not yet a final order that Russo forfeit the retirement money.

Russo broke his contract so he could lead nearby Henrico County Public Schools, where his base salary is $206,588.